Utility workers — linemen, cable splicers, gas crews, water crews, and vault electricians — were exposed to asbestos across the electric, gas, and water systems they built and maintained. Power cable was allegedly insulated with asbestos cloth, underground conduit and water main were made of asbestos cement, and the manholes and vaults where crews worked were lined with the same materials.

How Utility Workers Were Exposed

Cable splicers stripped and worked with cloth-insulated cable and wire, where asbestos braid served as the high-temperature layer — cutting, stripping, and reworking it released fiber in close quarters, often inside a confined manhole or vault. Line and underground crews cut, reamed, and joined asbestos-cement (Transite) pipe and conduit for power ducts, gas mains, and water mains, and dry-cutting that pipe put out heavy chrysotile dust. Working inside manholes and vaults meant breathing whatever fiber had settled or was disturbed, and utility equipment was sealed with asbestos gaskets and packing.

The Asbestos Materials — and the Products They Came In

Exposure tracked to a handful of material types. Each links to products documented in the AsbestosIndex as allegedly asbestos-containing:

Cloth-insulated cable & wire — stripped and spliced in vaults and on lines:

Asbestos-cement (Transite) pipe & conduit — cut and reamed for power duct, gas, and water:

Gaskets & sealing materials — on transformers, switchgear, and utility equipment:

Browse the full Electrical Insulation & Panels and Cement Pipe, Board & Transite categories for more.

Take-Home Risk to Families

Utility workers carried asbestos fibers home on their clothing, skin, and tools — cement-pipe dust and cable braid alike — exposing spouses and children who never worked with asbestos. See take-home asbestos exposure.

If you worked as a utility worker and were diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease after exposure to asbestos on the job, you may have a legal claim against the makers of the asbestos products involved.

Product references reflect allegations documented in publicly filed asbestos litigation. This information is published by an independent media organization — not a law firm — and is educational only. It does not constitute legal advice or provide legal services.